TOMOTHON Lessons

Team Building Presentation

Date: September 15

This was my first ever project of the course. In it, we were to design our own drama game (or Team Building Activity as Mr. Steckley put it) in order to get familiar with others, build relationships, develop trust, foster group interaction, stimulate creative thinking, and create a postive group culture. The point was to get everyone as a group participating in your game, without anyone feeling left out or with unfair advantages.

While we were allowed to use pre-existing games for our presentation, I wanted to do something different to go above and beyond.

So, I came up with my own game called...

Title Flytrap

The premise of Flytrap is simple. Everyone is a fly buzzing the room.

All of a sudden, the ground becomes flypaper! Everybody's feet are stuck to the ground, and they can no longer move around!

In order for the flies to escape, they have to work as a team in order to fly off of the trap.

One person, the "Lord of the Flies" will start by pointing at and calling the name of another fly.

Each subsequent fly has to point to and call the name of another fly that hasn't already been pointed at until the last fly has been called.

At this point, the last fly has to point to the first fly who started the chain and call their name.

If done succesfully, the flies as a team are able to outstrength the trap, and are free to buzz off around the room again.

Final Grade:

Preparation (Knowledge/Understanding) 4+

Activity Choice (Thinking/Inquiry) 4-

Delivery (Application) 100%

Mark: 91/100

From the feedback I got from Mr. Steckley and my own personal reflection, I think I did a very good job with the presentation and game.

The game was fun and engaging, and I was able to lead through it effectively from beginning to end.

I had an excellent introduction and explanation of the rules, and the instructions were easy and simple to follow.

I provided great enthusiasm and energy, and made sure that everyone was able to participate.

Also, one of the criteria for the game was that each round was supposed to progress in a way to make it more challenging. I did so by adding changes to initial game, such as only one foot stuck to the ground at a time, or a hand stuck to the ground.

All in all, this was a great first example of my leadership abilities at work.

Values Learnt

Innovation

Leaders need to be able to think outside of the box and do things in ways that other would find challenging. While I could have used any average game such as Charades or Pictionary, I decided to try and make my own game.

Inclusiveness

One of the main criteria of this presentation was that every person was to be included in the game. By making the game only winnable as a team, everyone was consequently forced to cooperate with one another and participate.

Presentation

While not every leader has to give big speeches, most leaders do need to be able to communicate effectively with their colleagues. Here, I was able to keep control over the game using easy instructions and constant encouragement.

Leaders Eat Last

Date: Oct 21

This was the first lesson that spoke to me in leadership.

I knew that the best leaders were the ones who helped others, but I never really understood how important Servant Leadership really was.

In this 45 minute video, we got to hear Simon Sinek, motivational speaker, talk about why "leaders eat last," meaning that those who achieve status are those willing to sacrifice themselves so that others may succeed.

So what is Servant leadership, and how has it changed me as a person?

Servant Leadership

Servant leadership means that you put others before yourself, you give others your time and effort rather than just your money, and you help others without wanting anything in return.

It is literally in the name. Servant leadership means Serving others.

Servant Leadership is the most effective style of leadership, because it's layered on top of every other style.

In democratic leadership, you are making sure that everyone else learns along the way. In autocratic, you are making sure everyone is doing their job. In Laissez-Faire, you are making sure that everyone's true potential is reached. In every case, it's never about what YOU provide, but what you are doing to help OTHERS provide.

If I wanted to be a leader in the arts, if I wanted to direct actors, teach dances, and conduct orchestras, I would first need to serve before I could receive.

Values Learnt

Servantry

Leaders have to give before they can receive. "It's the cost of leadership" as Sinek States. It means that when danger arrives, you are the first one to confront it. If you're not willing to give up your own interests, you are not a leader.

Trustability

A leader has to create a circle of safety around them in order for the people they lead to be willing to give it their all. There's a difference between working for a cause and working for a paycheck, and trust is what separates these two.

Effort

Leadership is a choice, not a requirement. Not everyone becomes a leader, but those who do put in the effort and time to do it properly. If you actively look to help the people around you, you become a leader.

LHMM

WHY ARE YOU READING ABOUT THIS HERE? I HAVE A WHOLE PAGE ABOUT IT!

Infographic Poster

Date: October 19

Mark: 84/100

This was my first realization at what I needed to improve in my leadership. For this assignment, we were to develop a poster that contained information about what kind of leader we were after taking our personality tests.

If you would like to know more about these results, check out my About Me!

This poster would become a representation of who you are using summaries and personal examples.

While I was able to complete all the surveys, determine my leadership style, and complete what I believed to be a good poster, I was shocked when it was returned to me with only an 84/100 grade. This was below my average expectation of at least 90% in everything.

This is where I learned how leadership was different from other courses. Leadership was not about doing the bare minimum, but going above and beyond to exceed expectations.

Final Grade:

Content 4-

Design 4-

Here is the poster I submitted for the project. If you compare it to the amount of imformation presented in my About Me page,

...Yeah, there is a lot of room for improvement.

After talking to Mr. Steckley about it, I realized that my problem was that I hadn't asked for help when I needed it. If I had had for an example poster to reference, or asked for a review, or went over the criteria with Mr. Steckley I would have been able to notice the amount of content that I was missing.

Instead, I went into the project blind and overconfident in my ability.

From this point on, I would make sure to apply this to all my classes, and ask for help whenever I was unsure of the requirements.

Values Learnt

Strive

Leaders are those willing to do the extra work that others would neglect. They take extra steps to make sure things are perfect. I chose to only do the bare minimum this time and consequently only received a sub-par mark.

Assistance

Asking for help is not a sign of weakness. The greatest leaders did not get to the top by themselves, but with the help of many others. If I had asked for help, I would have been able to realize that my work was only sub-par.

Self-Awareness

Even though it wasn't presented on the poster. I was able to learn quite a lot about myself. Through becoming more self-aware of of my personality and leadership style, I will be able to apply this leadership in the future.

Leadership Interview

Date: December 14

Mark: Still Unknown

Here is where I began applying what I learned from the poster assignment.

In this interview assignment, we were to conduct a 5 minute long interview with a person of our choosing to demonstrate our communication and interviewing skills. We were to ask 5 questions to them, with each one getting more involved/deeper than the last.

Before I even began thinking about making my interview, I first went up and asked Mr. Steckley for an example of a 4+ grade example.

I then went over the rubric with him, and started to get a sense of what I needed in order for my presentation to be amazing.

Throughout my work process, I also asked for opinions on my interview with Mr. Steckley and classmates.

Had I not asked for help, I would not have known that the point of the presentation was to have a mic drop moment, nor would I have understood that the 5 minute limit was a hard limit. I also would not have changed a few questions that were too similar and may have cost me marks.

For my interview, I chose to talk with Moiz Munir, a fellow student about what it was like being part of the school's play. Moiz was the stage manager of Laurel Heights 2022 play, The Last Resort.

What people don't know is that being part of the cast and crew of a play is quite a hard job that requires a lot going on behind the scenes, and not just the acting on stage.

I started with a couple of ice-breaker questions about how he felt with the aftermath of the show, such as which scenes he liked or didn't like.

Then I moved on to deeper questions that regarded how he worked with the other people as a group to overcome problems.

Finally, after having given the audience an inside experience to working behind the play, I asked if there was any one specific piece of advice he would like to tell future aspiring actors, playwrights, stage managers, tech teams, etc.

Here's the video to the right!

Values Learnt

Assistance

This time, I was able to ask for assistance ahead of the due date, and therefore got a clear idea of what I needed to get done in order to achieve excellency. I also took the time to make sure that Moiz was willing to help with my project.

Communication

While some people are able to improvise on the spot, others like me require a bit of preparation before they can present. In the end though, I was able to communicate my questions to Moiz and responses to the audience.

Self-Improvement

I was able to apply my past failures to this project. I asked about parts I was unsure of, and did my best to go above and beyond rather than the bare minimum. This meant that I was able to learn from my mistakes.

Lessons & CourseWork

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